


Power

by KyaniteD



Series: Worlds in 100 Words [4]
Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Age Difference, Alternate Universe - Medieval, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Drabble Collection, F/F, Soulmates, Underage Kissing, Wordcount: 100
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-06-19
Updated: 2016-11-12
Packaged: 2018-04-05 04:34:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 22
Words: 2,200
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4166094
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KyaniteD/pseuds/KyaniteD
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Stills from a story never told.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Evil Queen

**Author's Note:**

> _Spin-off from SwanQueen 100, collecting all drabbles from the "Power"-universe and expanding it with new ones._   
>    
>  _The search for a story, 100 words at a time._   
> 
> 
> * * *
> 
> Also, on a serious note, there will be one underage kiss, nothing more (Regina will see to it).  
> 

 

* * *

 

Life with her mother and her husband taught Regina an important lesson: No one ever remained indifferent to power. In the end, there were only two options - _yield_ or _wield_. After indifference had destroyed her love and _yield_ had destroyed her hope, she chose _wield_ to save her life.  
  
But while power was impartial, man was not.  
  
A man seeking justice was brave, a man employing knowledge was wise, and a man wielding power without compromise was unfaltering.  
  
A woman seeking justice was obsessed, a woman employing knowledge was a witch, and a woman wielding power without compromise was evil.

 

* * *

 


	2. Snow

 

* * *

 

Regina was to be regent until Snow White came of age and was ready to take her seat on the throne.  
  
She tried to employ Cora's methods to breed some sense of responsibility and ambition into the girl. But she relented when it was obvious that the girl would never show interest beyond that in pretty flowers, pretty birds and pretty dresses, without ill will toward anyone or anything, just being light and fair and free.  
  
Snow did not yield to power, nor was she indifferent to it. She wielded her own kind, it just wasn't that of a sovereign.

 

* * *

 


	3. Savior

 

* * *

 

Regina disapproved, but did not interfere, when Snow married a shepherd, who was equally ill-equipped and unsuitable for the throne as his wife.  
  
Regina's savior, her soulmate, the kindred spirit who would ease her worries, arrived in the form of their newborn child.  
  
The moment she laid eyes on Emma, she recognized an old soul, recognized the fire burning in dragon-green eyes.  
  
She knew this would be the one with the heart to love those who needed to be loved, the power to fight those who needed to be fought, and the wisdom to know one kind from the other.

 

* * *

 


	4. Release

 

* * *

 

When Emma comes of age, Regina seals it, _celebrates_ it with a kiss.  
  
It's not a chaste kiss of family, nor is it the tentative probing of young lovers. It's hunger and fire and destruction and creation - a promise and a warning as they lay claim on each other and dare anyone to interfere.  
  
Snow disapproves, but it's inconsequential.  
  
Regina thinks of magic as Emma's calloused hands seek purchase on her hips and draw her closer. She smiles into the kiss, because she knows the time of guidance is over: this princess will take power and forge her own destiny.

 

* * *

 


	5. Family

 

* * *

 

"By the powers, Emma! She cannot be your consort, she's your grandmother!"  
  
"Not by blood. And still she's been even more of a _mother_ than you."  
  
"We loved you!"  
  
"It takes more than love, mother. She has taught me everything I need to know," Emma's eyes glint darkly, "including love."  
  
"Oh my-" Snow's knees buckle, but she steadies herself. "But y-you won't have an heir."  
  
"We will raise Henry."  
  
"What? I don't-"  
  
"When my brother turns three, we will come and get him, to raise him as heir to the throne."  
  
"You cannot-!"  
  
"Yes, we can, mother, and we will."

 

* * *

 


	6. Advent

 

 

* * *

 

For a long time Regina believed with certainty that Daniel had been her soulmate. It was the certainty of a nescient youth, exuberant and desperate to be loved.

But with every year after his death, her certainty waned and the notion took root that she hadn’t met her soulmate yet. With every year the memories imprinted on her soul became clearer, until one day she knew she should have recognized her soulmate in the moment of his death.

It was the day of Emma’s birth, the moment she entered the world and a soothing sensation of serenity settled Regina’s restlessness.

 

* * *

 


	7. Bonds

 

 

* * *

 

Emma is five when she climbs into Regina’s lap and asks: “Regina, why are you alone?”

Emma never uses a nickname, always carefully pronounces her name as Regina taught her, and Regina responds in kind.

“I’m not alone, Emma, I have you." Regina smiles, but Emma frowns.

“But that’s not like mother and father, or Ruby and Belle, or cook and the quartermaster.”

Regina sighs and threads her fingers through soft golden curls. “I have no need for that kind of company, dear.”

It’s an easy lie.

“Good,” Emma says and slings her arms around Regina’s neck, hugging her tight.

 

* * *

 


	8. Politics

 

* * *

 

 

"But Your Majesty, you don't-"

Regina lowers her head and smiles before carefully observing the woman beside her on the throne. She knows that Emma _does_ understand politics, but she also knows that she doesn't have any patience for the maneuvering and machinations it involves.

Emma's heart is pure and her mind clear, she favors concise words and straightforward actions. It's what Regina loves about her - it never leaves her in doubt.

It's what their advisers hate about her, it rarely leaves them any room to maneuver.

She will talk to them later, hopefully a war can still be averted.

 

* * *

 


	9. Wars

 

 

* * *

 

Emma is not afraid of war, not afraid to throw herself into battle. She fights the way she loves, immersing herself in it, heart exposed and soul afire.

It's a beautiful, yet frightening sight, and it's what makes Regina secretly adamant to avoid armed conflicts. It's selfish, but she already endured a quarter century without her, she's not keen on adding another day, let alone _years upon years_.

She remembers lifetimes in which they never met, and others in which they died in each others' arms, at each other's hands.

This is a better one. She wants it to last.

 

* * *

 


	10. Ambition

 

 

* * *

 

Regina’s power was not her birthright; still she was born to it, groomed for it by an ambitious mother.

When she joined the royal court at the widowed king’s behest, to provide motherly companionship to his child, it was Cora’s unyielding insistence that made Regina queen in name beside a man thrice her age.

After the king's death, she knew she would be ousted, leaving the young princess exposed and vulnerable to the influence of conspiring nobles vying for the throne. She loved Snow, and when she seized power it was her ambition to wield it to protect them both.

 

* * *

 


	11. Determination

 

 

* * *

 

 

Emma's power is inherent; she was born with it and it with her. She's alight with it, like a blazing furnace, radiating it, bleeding it from every pore.

Snow has a hard time accepting that Emma is not hers, that she was merely the conduit to bring her into the world. Even before she can walk, Emma squirms from her possessive grasp and patronizing touches, always turning toward the open and reaching for the yet unseen.

Emma's power is raw and pristine and blindingly bright. Regina drinks it in, almost drowns, when she's pressing the smiling infant to her chest.

 

* * *

 


	12. Peace

 

* * *

 

 

The king isn't dead yet, when the traitorous nobles move their pawns, while the army of mercenaries assembled by Cora and Count D'Or stands ready to be commanded by loyal officers of the Royal Guard.

Regina watches Snow as she strolls through the gardens, oblivious to the plots that involve her death or subjugation; oblivious to Regina's plans to exile her, to separate her from what is about to take place in her name.

"So, what do you want, _your majesty_?" Count D'Or emphasizes mockingly.

"Peace." she whispers, knowing the price.

"Very well," he gleefully replies, "war it shall be."

 

* * *

 


	13. Break

 

 

* * *

 

Regina dreads Emma's twelfth birthday, because it marks the beginning of her transition to adulthood:  
It's the day when she will choose her path as a ruler.

Snow had refused the choice, as neither Regina nor the king could teach her what she longed to know.

But Emma is eager to grow wings and soar, and Regina knows what she will choose.  
The path of knighthood will lead Emma away, in body and spirit, maybe even into the arms of a first love.

It will be the first night since Emma's birth that Regina invites a companion to her chambers.

 

* * *

 


	14. Conflict

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>   
>  _It probably should be "James", but in my head he's always "David"._  
> 

 

* * *

 

Through her tales David's mother had taught him that even the noblest cause may require the sacrifice of innocence.

He doesn't comprehend until he's holding Snow while she's lamenting the war and the loss of life, cursing Regina under her breath, as the young queen herself watches them from afar with a frozen expression.

Their eyes meet. And for a moment, sunlight breaking through the windows reveals the shimmer of tears, but it's gone when the next cloud passes.

He nods at the queen, drapes an arm around Snow and leads her away, to the safety and innocence of shepherding.

 

* * *

 


	15. Damian

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _Birthday update! Gifting myself with a new character and a first draft of[cover art](http://i171.photobucket.com/albums/u286/kyanited/Emma_Lion_006_zps8cqzvvwc.jpg)._

 

* * *

 

Regina meets her fiercest rival for Emma's affection on the morning after a hunt from which Emma doesn't return.

She feels that Emma is alive, but her condition is uncertain and Regina urges haste in their search.

They find corpses of a mountain lion and a bear by a creek, and further downstream Emma, unconscious and bruised. Her arm is curled around a bloody ball of fur that's hissing weakly when they approach.

Regina is moved by the mutual protectiveness. She has no heart to kill the orphaned cub and orders them both brought to the castle, knowingly inviting trouble.

 

* * *

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>   
>  _This one took 3 weeks to write, which is the reason why this is not fleshed out to epic proportions._  
> 


	16. Severance

 

* * *

 

The war rages on for years, the battles rolling in waves across the lands amidst shifting allegiances, before Regina discovers the extent of d'Or and Cora's aspirations: The fate she spared Snow is to be hers - a puppet on invisible strings -, as her troops are only bound by gold and no alliance is strong enough to stand a test of blood and deprivation.

When she finally breaks free from the web of deceit through careful strategizing of her own, the throne is secured, but Snow is lost to her forever, having found refuge in another life and a different love.

 

* * *

 


	17. Freedom

 

 

* * *

 

The last insurgents surrender their arms the day after Emma's birth, and it's a sign to the land and the people, who crave nothing more than peace.

The young princess, born in exile, unaware and impartial, becomes their savior and idol of hope.

Regina, too, wants peace, wanted it from the start, but in the shadows of Cora and d'Or she's become the _evil_ queen.

She knows she must guard the purity of Emma's power, cannot associate herself with Emma's lightness.

She keeps a careful distance; and between the sheep farm and the castle Emma grows up free, but alone.

 

* * *

 


	18. Proximity

 

* * *

 

Sometimes, when her training allows it, Emma and Damian visit her parents.

The cat adores Snow and willingly stays with her when David and Emma move the herd through the valley.

David cherishes the quiet moments with his daughter, when they sit by the fire, drinking their milk and watching the distant stars.

"I love her," Emma whispers the to waning flames.

And he knows, but he says nothing.

Emma is too young to understand, too young to _remember_. It has to be infatuation, a fascination with a beautiful, aloof woman who is always mysteriously near, but never quite close.

 

* * *

 


	19. Emergence

 

* * *

 

There's a time when Emma becomes aware of the way her skin comes alive when Regina is close, and the way her body faintly aches when she leaves her behind.

There's a time when Emma becomes aware of Regina's distance, when she notices how every touch seems to hurt, when she sees her flinch and avert her eyes, when she watches her flee the room after words have been spoken yet nothing has been said.

There's a time when Emma becomes aware of the lingering silence everywhere, rising in a deafening crescendo as it bounds back and forth between them.

 

* * *

 


	20. Appearance

 

* * *

 

Emma's first wedding is Ruby and Belle's.

Per Regina's decree it's a wedding of the royal household, and the castle is bustling with preparations - much to Emma's delight and Regina's chagrin.

Emma is excited to be their flower child, and although the master of ceremonies objects to the princess serving commoners in any capacity, Regina sees no reason to deny her.

She only uses her veto power when Emma presents a riding frock and breeches as her attire.

"A proper _dress_ , Emma," she chides, wistfully realizing what a rare sight it will be once her power to demand it wanes.

 

* * *

 


	21. Assurance

 

* * *

 

The second wedding Emma attends is her parents' renewal of vows.

Ten years ago, during a merciless war, when supplies and hope were scarce, when Snow was pregnant and David struggled to keep them safe, marriage was a formal requirement and the wedding a solemn ceremony.

Now Regina stands amid the guests, surrounded by mirth and cheerfulness, but feeling exposed and displaced without command over the event or its attendees. When people notice her unease and stare at her, a small hand slips into hers and Emma smiles at her reassuringly, wearing a suit tailored after her favorite riding coat.

 

* * *

 


	22. Disbelief

 

* * *

 

Her third wedding Emma will attend as the bride.

Regina stares with heartache at the words. She traces the golden initials of _Emma Swan_ with her fingertips, and a tear slips over her cheek.

Soon, quick steps are echoing through the hallway and by the way Damian perks up beside her she knows it's Emma. She wipes away the tear, but it's too late.

Emma strides across the room and kneels where Damian had lounged.

Softly kissing Regina's hand, she takes the letter. "Have faith, my love," she whispers, and the words begin to glow: _Emma Swan and Regina Mills_.

 

* * *

 

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Illustrations for "Power"](https://archiveofourown.org/works/4503201) by [KyaniteD](https://archiveofourown.org/users/KyaniteD/pseuds/KyaniteD)




End file.
